Wheelchair usage has received recent attention in the media. It has been estimated that currently approximately 2 million Americans use wheelchairs. This number is expected to grow dramatically as the baby boomer generation grows elderly, as the population increases and as the age of life expectancy increases. Also, there has been recent media coverage on injured veterans from the war in Iraq and on mobility assistance devices such as wheelchairs and prosthetic limbs. However, despite recent improvements in technology and intense recent interest in wheelchairs, the modern wheelchair varies just slightly from traditional designs. Most importantly modern wheelchairs are incapable of performing tasks that non-wheelchair users take for granted continuously throughout the day. For example, prior art wheelchairs are incapable of going over a curb, up or down a set of stairs or traveling over rough terrain. Consequently, the wheelchair bound operator is continuously reminded of his predicament and is forced to adjust his daily existence to fit into a society that has been seemingly designed without consideration for wheelchair bound people.
What is needed is a better automated wheelchair.